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Power and society
Power and society
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“Power is the capability or the ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events”(Webster). The misuse of power can depend on how high in society a person is to obtain an amount of power. Too much power can be a negative thing for some people to have, because humanity has a long and devastating track record of events that regards to the topic of abusive power. Power can be a negative tool when it’s abused by an individual for retaliation, personal gain, or constant controlling. Fa Zheng, an advisor or by Liu Bei, “General Who Spreads Martial Might”(Revolvy), from the Eastern Han Dynasty, 206 BC to 220 AD , and more recently, Joe Arpaio, the sheriff of Maricopa, Arizona in 2010, are two examples of people that took advantage of their power. Fa Zheng abused his power by taking revenge on the people who insulted him prior to his position of becoming an advisor and had them executed …show more content…
An example that proves power can have positive benefits is that an “individual creativity is itself possible only in the context of all the linguistic, cultural, scientific, and technological heritage of humankind”(Shaviro 149). This would mean that the power within communism can be a positive by the creativity of an individual on the society. To exemplify, an individual who used communism as a positive creativity is Karl Marx, the father of communism. Marx used communism in positive creativity by “constructed his vision of communism out of the human and technological possibilities already visible in his time, given the priorities that be adopted by a new socialist society” (Ollman). However, it would depend on how the creativity of the individual would affect society as a whole, as a result “gives limitations of any attempts to imagine utopia”(Shaviro 148). All in all, the type of position in power and the level of creativity an individual has can lead to a negative impact on
Contrary to popular belief, power does not give a person everything needed in life. Power gives people an illusion of a perfect, ungrueling life which- news flash!- is probably the total opposite of what power actually bestows upon people. Within The Count of Monte Cristo, Edmond Dantes is mistreated with due to abundance of power Monseuir Villefort has, causing Edmond to later seek power to avenge for the mistreatment caused to him. Almost everyone in the book either loses or gives up their power in the end, thanks to Edmond. Viva la Vida, similarly, depicts the story of Louis XVI possessing immense power and then being deprived of the same power he once thought was going to be in his fist forever.
The prehistoric times stand evidence to the power of language as a tool for communication and growth. Language has proven to be an effective medium and factor surrounding the evolution of man. Language has played a big role in the development of individuals and societies. What is spoken and/or written, help in the initiation of imagination, expression of feelings, and conveyance of thoughts and ideas.
From serial killers to corrupt politicians, power never ceases to course through the veins of man. J. Edgar Hoover, for example, first wanted to rid the streets of America of criminals and build up the law enforcement in that country. As time went on, he became more infatuated with power. He began to keep files on people as high as the president, and his power began to eat him alive. He changed from the honorable duty-driven young agent to a corrupted and self-centered old man.
When a person is in power, situations arouse where they can acquire anything by lying, bribing, conning, or stealing. With these in mind anybody in power could easily become a powerful foe.
People who have power use it to manipulate the rules, which in turn may lead to their loss of power. There are times when the rules are not to their liking. They abuse their powers and not follow the rules. This can lead to consequences that are endured by those using and abusing power as shown by characters in The Lord of the Flies and “I Only Came to Use the Phone.” These works demonstrate how people change when given authority for good or evil and suggest that anyone given power can use it to their advantage. People’s use or abuse of power is not only a perfect theme for these two pieces of literature but also in our everyday lives.
Power. It is defined as the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events. Throughout time, certain individuals have acquired power in their society as a way to govern and keep order among their community. Power is not a new concept; it was used in the past by many emperors, kings, and queens, and is still being used by presidents, prime ministers, and dictators. Although, it has been used to further progress societies into what the world is like today, not all power has been used for the best of mankind. But what goes awry to make power turn corrupt? In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, it is illustrated how power can turn corrupt, when authoritative figures, who possess power, abuse it for their personal gain, rather than for the common good of the society.
Power- power is the complete domination of others, and since all men want to dominate those around them, power is valued as one of the most important possessions. Power is highly sought after, thus the correct decisions must be made to obtain it, and this is clearly proven by Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar". Power is obtained much easier than it is kept. "Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!" The conspirators celebrate the death of Caesar, because they believe that they make the right decision in killing him, and so far they have, but the decision to spare Mark Antony is one that will haunt them in the end. Power is not always beneficial, it can be a very dangerous possession. "You shall not stir out of your house today." Calphurnia makes the decision to persuade Caesar to stay home, and not go to the Senate meeting. When one has power, there are those who want it, like Brutus and the other conspirators. Calphurnia makes the right decision, yet Caesar makes the wrong one by deciding ...
Power has been defined as the psychological relations over another to get them to do what you want them to do. We are exposed to forms of power from the time of birth. Our parents exercise power over us to behave in a way they deem appropriate. In school, teachers use their power to help us learn. When we enter the work world the power of our boss motivates us to perform and desire to move up the corporate ladder so that we too can intimidate someone with power one day. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness Kurtz had a power over the jungle and its people that was inexplicable.
In which case this idea of power leading to corruption is not only true but happens to those least expected to. In William Shakespeares' tragedy, Macbeth, the character Macbeth gains power by killing people and lying, he kills king Duncan out of greed, he kills his "best friends" Banquo out of fear, and then fails to realize that he is not invincible. Power leading to corruption is more of a fact than an idea, in most cases when all is said and done the one with the power isn't who they said they'd be. Macbeth was once a Scottish nobleman whose greed for power became overwhelming, leading to his own demise. Shakespeare begins Macbeth, with the appearance of three witches.
Power allows people to do anything they want. They can use it in different ways, they can tell people to obey them, they can use it to hurt someone they hate, and even rob. They can also use it in a positive way, they can help people and do a lot of good things with it.
All people have power, some people are just more powerful than others. Having power is the ability to create change. Examples of power being used wrongly is during the French revolution, and the residential school crisis. During the French revolution, two examples were shown of people abusing their power. King Louie XVI raised taxes so that he could buy things that he and his wife Marie Antoinette wanted, and took away rights from the third estate. In the residential schools crisis, the teachers, priests and nuns had power over the students and abused the students in different ways. Superior people take away the rights from those who are below them, but they end up corrupt.
When looking at the powers of different presidents, you have to look at their responsibilities and what power they actually have when it comes to decision making. Both the Iranian and American presidents have two different presidential powers, formal and informal. Formal powers are ones that are written into the constitution and have to be upheld by anyone who comes into power, for example both presidents can sign treaties with foreign countries. Informal power are not explicitly written into the constitution (1), but are done by the president, for example being persuasive, this is a power they need to use because that is how they will gain the presidential role, by persuading the public and to make international treaties they need to use the
The leader will always take advantage of his power. Power causes the leader to make decisions, that will only better himself. "... Boxer was being sent to the knacker's." The pigs killed an animal just so that they could make some money. The power led them to this decision, they could kill Boxer, make some money, and no one would ever find out. Everyone has heard about the golden rule: "whoever has the gold makes the rules." This applies to "
Power is authority and strength, which is any form of motive force or energy, ability to act, or control. When too much power is given, a dictatorship government can form, in which all decisions are made by one authority. In the book Animal Farm, by George Orwell the author portrays how “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Lord Acton).
The term power has a variety of definitions. According to the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, the first definition of power refers to “the ability or capacity to act or do something effectively”, also include “a capacity, faculty, or aptitude,” (“power. (n.d.)